Engagement with FCHS

I have engaged with others through music by being the Drumline instructor of the Falls Church High School Marching Band.  I've worked with this program for two years and the students never cease to amaze me.  They don't have to best equipment, the best practice field, or the best circumstances, but they have the drive and the passion.  We were able to engage in music and dig into different musical elements that are only possible if the want and drive are in the students.  I went from having a 7 person pit with 2 of them reading music to a 9 person pit with everyone able to read music, know 5 scales, 2 warm ups, and the entire show memorized in 2 weeks.  It's all about how involved and interested the students are. I am lucky that I had students with the passion that they had.  They also went from having one of the weakest pits to winning best percussion.  The relationships you build with students are also vital to success.  If I had come in and taught everything like a traditional class with a smartboard and teach them note by note, they would've all lost interest.  We went on trips to parks, various walks, and they even went hiking together after I left.  These relationships and friendships that students build are much more valuable to an educator than natural talent.  
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Click here to see where we had come to after 4 days of rehearsal.